An Artistic Mission – Interview with Korean Painter Hye Young Kim

Since she was a child, Hye Young Kim liked to be a painter. With her passion for painting she is an exception in her family but nevertheless she was supported by her parents: “This encouragement was very important for me when I was young and it still is in these days.”

However, it’s not only praise that influences her, but also rational critique: “Of course you have to know about the difference between critique and a simple decline. True critique is relevant for me and everybody who knows me and my arts can express helpful critique. I take critique seriously and I also become sad if the critique was negative.”

Moreover she sets herself certain targets related to what she wants to achieve with her art: “I want the ambiguity and the contradiction to take place. It must not have this one fantastic and breathtaking moment. If something is beautiful there is always the risk, that you might not like to look at it next day. But if something is strange you cannot get rid of it and you start to dispute about it.”

Although she has certain objectives in her mind the way to reach them is not pre-defined at all. Rather she gives her intuition room to develop. “Normally my inspirations happen at the daily routine. I used to be at airports frequently because I travelled a lot around Europe. There I took a lot of photos and I photographed very normal things. If I liked the colours and themes on the photos I just started painting them.”

Coincidence plays an essential role, too: “I start unknowingly but finally I have to become conscious of what is happening. At the beginning the colours have to play by themselves but later I have to control them. I never know what will happen during the journey from the uncontrolled to the controlled. But I enjoy it. At the beginning there are many spots where work is in progress and they are all tidy in the end. The process of tidying up cannot be avoided because at first I let the chaos be.”

Ultimately the chaos finds shape in very different versions. In this manner she always can develop something new. “I always have to paint new things and I may not bore myself. It is always the search for something new. I consider it as my job to create something new”, she points out her intention.